While the first Test between India and New Zealand gets underway at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, the weather continues to be a worry. The toss finally occurred, after a completely washed out day one, on day two, with Indian captain Rohit Sharma winning the toss and choosing to bat first. However, the weather forecast suggests that rain could set in later in the day, when play is expected to continue into the second session and around 4 PM.
India has brought two changes to this playing XI, Sarfaraz Khan will replace the injured Shubman Gill, Kuldeep Yadav will replace Akash Deep. This change not only strengthens India’s batting line-up, but also brings in an extra spinner, which may prove crucial.
New Zealand also has its problems, with star batsman Kane Williamson being out of the mix due to an injury he received in the prior series. Captain Tom Latham has assembled a squad of players with some experience and new talents, such as Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra.
Both teams have been given extra 30 overs in all three sessions for Day 2 to try to reach 98 overs. However, there is heavy rainfall predicted from Tuesday to Thursday and this puts in to question whether this goal will be realized.
The two sides are keen to make a difference after they lost a whole day of competition. This Test series is important for both sides due to recent form of India and home advantage against New Zealand who has been struggling in the subcontinent. While fans wait for some action on Day 2, the hope is that enough cricket is played to set the tone for the series.
